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Bryan Scott ’17 at Jack Kemp Stadium in February 2026.
Out of the Foxhole
After smashing multiple records at ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë and gutting out an eight-year career in professional football, what’s next for Bryan Scott ’17?

Occidental magazine brings you campus news, in-depth features, and profiles of exceptional alumni. For the 2025-26 academic year, the magazine will publish one digital-only issue (Summer 2025) and two print and digital issues (Fall 2025 and Spring 2026).

OTS and ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë students meet at La Selva. Picture taken at La Selva’s welcome sign.
Science, students, and synergy converge at La Selva Research Station
Detail from The Metamorphosis of Bunny Baxter
This roundup has everything: a pair of memoirs, a literary farce, a coming-of-age story, a writer’s guide to romantasy, and the legendary Miss Britney Spears
Evan Caulfield '26, center, and other participants in ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë's Summer Justice Internship in Greece
Evan Caulfield ’26 applies his urban and environmental policy education in the service of aiding refugees during a summer-long internship in Greece
Professor of History Emeritus Wellington Chan
Wellington K.K. Chan, National Endowment for the Humanities Distinguished Professor of the Humanities and Professor of History Emeritus at Occidental, died November 5 at Huntington Memorial...
Thomas A. Slobko, chief information officer and professor of mathematics emeritus at Occidental
Thomas A. Slobko, chief information officer and professor of mathematics emeritus at Occidental, died September 17 at Mt. San Antonio Gardens in Pomona. He was 85.
2025 inductees into the Occidental Athletics Hall of Fame.
The Occidental Athletics Hall of Fame will welcome five new inductees into its ranks on Sunday, October 19, during Homecoming & Family Weekend.
Two-time Emmy winner Emma Choate ’20 with her 2-year-old Irish wolfhound, George.
From casting to costumes to music direction and composition, three Occidental alumni live out their Hollywood dreams while being honored by their peers
Retiring professors Elmer Griffin, Margi Rusmore, Stuart Rugg, Peter Dreier, Alexandra Puerto, Stuart Rugg, and Ron Buckmire
Occidental says goodbye to seven retiring professors—and some of their brightest pupils express their appreciation for a combined 233 years of service to the College
Gibby Professor of Science Margi Rusmore
ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë's inaugural Gibby Professor of Science may be exiting the classroom, but there are still mountains to climb—as well as prepping her data (and her extensive rock collection) for future...
Professor Ron Buckmire in the classroom in 2015.
After a 30-year career at Occidental, the mathematician, researcher, administrator, and chess master applies his problem-solving skills to a new role as dean
Warren Montag, the Louis M. Brown Family Professor of English
Whether it was 18th-century British literature or 20th-century European critical theory, Montag approached the syllabus with rigor, grace, warmth, and plenty of deadpan humor—and he...
President Tom Stritikus and Professor of Kinesiology Stuart Rugg at Commencement in May 2025.
With seemingly boundless energy, a passion for teaching, and his signature catchphrase, Rugg helped build kinesiology into a signature program at ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë
Professor Peter Dreier at Anderson Field
After 32 years as a professor at ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë, Dreier will return in 2026 as an adjunct—to teach his first-ever class on poverty and inequality and take one more swing at Campaign Semester
A first-year member of the Class of 2018 talks with Puerto during Orientation activities on Aug. 25, 2014, in the Academic Quad.
As an associate professor of history and Latina/o and Latin American studies, Puerto built a life and a curriculum deeply rooted in the Highland Park community
Occidental Professor Emeritus Elmer Griffin, photographed in 2001.
From Fall 2001: With a curriculum that incorporates psychology, religion, Rastafari, and racism, Associate Professor Elmer Griffin challenges his students to reimagine the world

Features

Derek Shearer photographed in March 2026
The Ambassadude Abides
As a diplomat, dealmaker, and master connector, Derek Shearer brought global leaders, policymakers, and a U.S. president to the classroom over his 45 years at ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë
Bryan Scott ’17 at Jack Kemp Stadium in February 2026.
Out of the Foxhole
After smashing multiple records at ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë and gutting out an eight-year career in professional football, what’s next for Bryan Scott ’17?
Members of the 1971 ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë rugby team.
Pitch Perfect
Larry Layne ’71 came to love rugby as a student-athlete—and an estate gift will provide a swift kick to its future at ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë
L-R: Associate professors Alaa Abdelfattah (economics), Tiffany Wheatland-Disu (Black studies), Madeline Wander ’08 (urban and environmental policy), Joel Walsh (computer science), Margaret Gaida (history), and Kai Yui Samuel Chan (politics).
16 Faculty, 16 Stories
Fifteen new tenure-track faculty and a veteran kinesiology professor discuss their favorite classes, their passion for teaching, and what brought them to ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë (hint: Location!)
Dean Simons ’59 and John Ingle ’50 in Moliere’s The Would-Be Gentleman (1962)
Theatre Brats
Two children of ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë professors grew up immersed in the magic of Shakespeare, Shaw, and Gilbert & Sullivan—in an era when a plucky little drama festival became their whole world
Occidental biology major Hannah Tawadrous '26
Lessons in Biology
ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë’s biology program blends exploration and experimentation, empowering students to uncover and explain life’s diverse ecosystems

First Word

From the Quad

From left, Lizzie Friedrich ’25, Lily Calvert ’25, and Hayden Jennings ’25 share a red-carpet moment during the 2026 Slamdance Film Festival.
A Ticket to Slamdance
ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë students and alumni find pathways into the Slamdance Film Festival, gaining industry exposure and experience following its move to Los Angeles
Obama Scholar Derek Jimenez '27
Overcoming Every Hurdle
First-generation college student and Obama Scholar Derek Jimenez ’27 is reshaping the intersection of community, culture, and affordable housing

Mixed Media

Filmmaker Thom Harp '92
Fertile Imagination
Thom Harp ’92 waited for years to direct his first movie—and after a long birthing process, he’s the proud father of two features

ÈÕ±¾ÎÞÂë Talk

2025-26 Kemp Lecturer Tim Miller with Occidental Professor Caroline Heldman.
Miller’s Crossing
Former GOP operative Tim Miller recounts his own political reckoning—and offers pearls of hope in the face of despair—as the 2025-26 Jack Kemp '57 Distinguished Lecturer

Last Page

Dale and Shirley Morter photographed on January 1, 2000.
A Couple’s Legacy
A scholarship gift honoring Shirley and Dale Morter ’56 will bring students from southwestern Pennsylvania to Occidental
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